


Buddy

by crazy_lion



Series: Not just pets [1]
Category: Demi Lovato - Fandom
Genre: Death, Dog - Freeform, Drama, Pain, Suffering, Tragedy, friendship human/animal, love for an animal, master - Freeform, playing with the dog
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-27
Updated: 2018-07-27
Packaged: 2019-06-17 08:36:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15457443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crazy_lion/pseuds/crazy_lion
Summary: On a Sunday of July, Demi is having fun with her dog, Buddy. She's happy, feeling better than usual, but a horrible event is about to turn her life around, transforming a quiet day in a real tragedy.Disclaimer: Through this piece of writing, published without any lucrative aim, I have no intention to give a thruthful representation of this person's nature, nor offend her in any way.





	Buddy

**Author's Note:**

> This story was originally written in Italian by me. You can find it on the website www.efpfanfic.net. My nickname there is crazy lion. I asked a friend if she wanted to translate this FanFiction in English and she said yes. We decided I could post it here so I did.  
> 

**Buddy**

 

It was Sunday, and Demi didn't want to wake up. It was July, really hot in Los Angeles, and the girl still didn't feel like putting up with such a torrid climate. Not yet, anyway. So she stayed in bed and stretched herself out a few times to try and numb the pain in her muscles that had been tormenting her for days. She felt it everywhere, but mostly in her arms and legs.

 _Damn summer_ she thought.

The heat always had that effect on her. She breathed in deeply, basking in the fresh smell of her recently cleaned sheets. Her line of thought was broken by a constant barking, then by a furball that jumped on her bed.

"Good morning to you too, Buddy," the girl said, stroking her dog's soft fur.

He had come into her life roughly two years earlier, and even though they hadn't really spent much time together, Demi felt that Buddy had been with her for a lifetime. "You came to wake me up this morning too, huh?" she asked him, scratching his head.

In response to that, he tilted his head to the side and barked as if to answer her, then jumped on her stomach and lied down to start licking her face.

"Yes, I love you too, puppy."

That gesture always tickled her, but she liked it because it was a way for the dog to show her his love, so she let him be. After a few minutes of cuddling, the two of them got out of bed. Demi opened the windows, put on a tracksuit and washed her face, then went to the kitchen for breakfast and poured some dog food in Buddy's bowl, who ran to eat it as if he hadn't done that in a week.

"What do you say, you want to go for a walk?" she asked him when they were done eating, only to then grab his leash and aim for the door.

The dog ran to her barking and jumping around happily. Demi tried to take him out as often as she could, and when she wasn't home, she left him in the garden. On rainy days, instead, the maltese was better off staying inside the house, or, if he did get out, he hid in a doghouse under the garden's awning. Luckily enough, that was a beautiful day. The sun was shining high in the sky, it was already hot even though it was early, and a light breeze was blowing, making the heat way more bearable. The birds were chirping, hoping to sing the newly arrived summer hello, while not many cars and even less pedestrians passed through the street, since the city somehow became empty during that period. That was exactly when Demetria got the best of her beloved Los Angeles. She could walk with Buddy more calmly, letting him explore his surroundings by curiously sniffing the ground, but always kept him on a leash for fear of him running, while she observed houses, gardens and plants around, enjoying that little green luckily found even in a large metropolis.

Once home, Buddy wanted to play. He didn't bring her his ball as he usually did, but a stuffed teddy bear the girl had given him as a gift. It was one of the toys she liked best when she was a child. Oddly enough, Buddy hadn't torn it apart by biting it like Demi expected, and the bear was still fine.

"Okay, I'll throw it, drop it first!" she exclaimed laughing, since the dog didn't want to let go off the toy. She couldn't even throw it he already got it back.

"Wow, you're fast!" Then she got it back and said: "No, I'm not giving it up. That's mine, and I'll keep it." And she ran around the house as he chased her, barking and growling. After tiring him a little, Demi threw the toy as far as she could. They had fun like that for a while, then she checked what she had in the fridge and realized there wasn't much. Fortunately some delis were still open, they were never closed on Sundays, so she decided to go buy something for herself, and who knew, maybe she could find a delicious steak for her beloved puppy.

"I'll see you in a minute, baby, okay? Be good!"

Buddy ran to the kitchen and started scratching the door to let her know he wanted out. When his owner opened it he rubbed up against her like a cat, then jumped up to get another dose of cuddles. How he loved them! Demi had such soft hands, and was a wonderful owner, just like a mother.

"I love you, honey," she whispered as he licked her and whined.

"Come on, don't be like that!"

Demetria felt guilty. She would have loved to take him with her, but she knew she would have had to leave him in the car, and she didn't want to. Leaving him alone was always awful to her, especially when she left for work in the morning. Sooner or later, she should have got another dog, so that Buddy would have a friend to play with, and she could have had another pet to spoil and love.

 

 

 

While waiting for Demi to get back home, Buddy had fun chasing his tail and running around the garden. Every once in a while, he stuck his nose under the bushes and found some lizards to play with. He liked to watch those little animals move around, and put his paws on them to stop them, but never really killed them, or if he did, it was never intentional. Suddenly, he stopped, his ears perked up and he sniffed the air. He stayed still and listened in, while his heart started beating furiously. There was something weird going on. He wanted to run, but had nowhere to hide, and even if he did find a place, he couldn't move. He was terrified. He felt threatened by someone or something, he wasn't sure of it yet. Then, everything happened in a flash. There was a rustle of leaves, and some kind of animal growled and got closer, then pounced on him so hard it pinned him to the ground. It was a dog, a bad one, not a good one like he thought himself to be. It arched its back and lowered its tail, and when Buddy got back up, the other jumped and bit his neck, then gave out a bark so loud it sounded like a scream. The two of them fought, scratched and bit eachother, letting out loud barks. Buddy growled louder than he ever did in his whole life, but the other was stronger, and scared him to death. It was superior to him when it came to physical strength, and it was bigger. Its bites were so powerful they dug deep into his flesh. It hurt. Bad, really bad. But what did it want? Why was it doing all of that? He tried to bark and ask, but the other didn't seem to hear, or if he did, never really cared. That damned dog's teeth felt like blades ripping out his heart -he was sure it would have killed him, if only it could have- and his nails were so sharp they seemed to belong to some kind of lethal weapon. As suddenly as it had started, the fight then ended. The intruder ran away leaving a trail of blood behind, while parts of flesh and red liquid dripped from its mouth. Buddy lied onto the ground. He was still breathing, too weak to bark and ask for help.

"Get back soon, Demi, please," he would have loved to tell her, if only she could understand him. "I'm sick, help me! I'm probably going to die, but I love you, remember that. Always."

Right then he felt a cold shiver running down his spine, and the darkness draped him.

 

 

 

Demi was happy. She had bought some chicken, grilled vegetables, baked potatoes and a couple of steaks for her dog. That day she felt happy, like no one and nothing could ruin her mood. It was marvelous to be so relaxed, at peace with herself and the world. It was already lunchtime, so she laid the table, put her own food on a plate and started calling her dog.

"Buddy! There's your lunch! I'm going to eat it all!" she joked. That was weird. Usually, whenever she called him to eat he came running, but now that wasn't happening. Maybe he had fallen asleep under a plant in the shade, and she couldn't blame him because of the climate, so she went out to the garden and walked towards the bushes. "Bud... Oh, my God! No, Buddy, baby!"

The dog was lying down with his belly exposed, and at first she thought he was sleeping, but then she saw it. A wide cut ran through his stomach. It didn't look deep, but there was so much blood on the ground! She knelt beside him and covered her mouth for a moment to avoid vomiting at the disgusting stench of blood. Then she painfully noticed the dog had various wounds on his sides, neck and right ear. They were all irregular, it looked like had been bitten by some animal, probably a bigger dog, a coyote ... But how could it have got to the city? Didn't those beast live in the woods? She didn't know why she thought about that. Buddy's ear was ... God, it was almost torn off! She touched her baby softly, to see if he was still breathing, if he had a heartbeat. He couldn't be dead! He couldn't just die!

"Buddy, come on, boy! You're going to be okay, alright? I'm calling the vet, this will be over soon."

Nothing. He wasn't breathing. There was no heartbeat. His body was cold. Frozen shivers ran down her spine, got to her heart and straight through her soul.

"Oh, dear God, no, no, nooooooooooooooooooo!"

She let out an inhumane scream, a blood curdling one full of pain, of suffering that only those who lost a pet can understand. She couldn't accept the fact that he was gone, much less that way. It was too horrible. Unjust, even. She felt her lungs burn as she gasped for air, it seemed like someone had just stabbed her ripping half her heart, being, soul and life out; because yes, Buddy wasn't just a pet to her. He was much more: he was one of her reasons for living, someone who could put a smile on her face even in the darkest days, who listened without judging and seemed to understand her without really being able to. He was a dog that only needed words, and if he had them, he would have been a complete human. He was like a son to Demi. Well, he had been. It was weird to talk about him in the past. But that was reality: she had lost him _forever_. He wasn't there anymore. He was _dead_. He had taken a part of her in Heaven, where he was now. Demi burst into tears and stayed there for hours sobbing so much that she lost her voice and her throat went dry.

She never knew what kind of strength and courage it took to go back inside, get a shovel and bury her beloved dog in the garden. She didn't think right then, or else the pain would have killed her. It already threatened to do so. Her heart was beating fast, and her head hurt so bad she wanted but bang it against a wall, but despite that, she tried not to look at Buddy's lifeless body or to think about what had happened or what she was doing. All she did was act. She dug a deep hole with the strength she still had in her and placed him inside, wrapped in his favorite blanket. The toy and the little ball he loved to play with right beside him. Then she closed everything up and lied there, in the grass. Tears started streaming down her face, soon mixing with the dirt and the blood which had stained on her, but she didn't care.

Always crying, when it was already dark outside, she got back inside the house, went to the bathroom and threw up her soul, then put her clothes in the sink and washed them with soap and hot water. After throwing up once more because of all the blood stained on them, she took a shower, but always felt like Buddy was barking, running, scratching or jumping on the bed, and every time she turned off the water and got out. But he was not there.

That day, Demi didn't eat or sleep. She just cried.

On the following morning her stomach opened up, and even though she always had a sweet breakfast, she ate everything she had bought at the deli, feeling then full and about to burst. She didn't want to slide back into her old habits, but she couldn't help herself and stuffed her face full.

It was really hard for her to tell her family about Buddy's death.

"My God, I can't believe it!" her mother said, quickly overcome by sadness. "I'm sorry, baby, do you want me to come over for company?"

"Maybe tomorrow, mum, I want to be alone now. I won't go to work today.

"As you want, honey."

Dallas and Madison cried and Eddie was deeply moved.

That day, the singer put Buddy's things away, because seeing them only made her suffering worse, then spent the following hours looking at the ceiling and doing nothing. She wouldn't have been able to keep herself occupied in any way. Fortunately, Phil had been understanding and let her stay home.

On the following day, after yet another sleepless night, Demi logged on to Twitter and wrote, while still sobbing and shivering once again:

_I'm sorry to say I lost my little Buddy on Sunday. He was a fantastic puppy, and I don't know what to do without him. My house and my life feel so empty without him!_

_I miss you, boy._

_I love you,_

_Mum_

 

Straight away, fans supported her in every possible way, and Demetria was grateful for that. Anyway, just as it happens to anyone who loses a pet that becomes part of the family, she was still sure she would have never pulled through that mourning. She felt lost, without her loving dog.

**Author's Note:**

> Notes  
> 1: Nobody really knows how Buddy died. Some say he was killed by a coyote, but Demi never revealed anything about it. I read a message she wrote on Twitter years ago, saying he was gone. I didn't report the exact words in the one I wrote. I used my own words, but made sure to keep the meaning of the text alive.  
> 2: I did some research on coyotes' behavior: they don't only live in pastures, as it was some time ago, but they're urbanizing, because they're less and less scared of men. I imagined Demi didn't know, that's why I made her say they generally live in the woods. Also, that kind of lament they give out, or the act of attacking like I explained are typical behaviors of these particular animals when they want to attack or threaten. A male usually weighs between eight and twenty kilos, while a female ranges from seven to eighteen.


End file.
